IPL 2025, Final: Irfan Pathan takes brutal dig at Virat Kohli for sluggish knock in RCB vs PBKS

Irfan Pathan seemed to have been let down by the manner in which Virat Kohli navigated the off-pace short deliveries bowled to him during the IPL 2025 Finals between Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Ahmedabad. Kohli was dismissed for 43 off 35 on the fifth delivery of the 15th over of the first innings.

Irfan highlighted PBKS' strategy while bowling to the RCB's star batter. It felt as though the cricketer-turned-commentator was not satisfied by Kohli's strike rate on a relatively batting-friendly surface at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. Azmatullah Omarzai was the one who dismissed the ace batter in the Afghan's third over of the night.

"They kept bowling short and slow balls to Virat Kohli. Strike rate of 123 after 35 balls on this pitch is disappointing," Irfan wrote on his X (formerly known as Twitter) handle.

Irfan Pathan@IrfanPathan

They kept bowling short and slow balls to Virat Kohli. Strike rate of 123 after 35 balls on this pitch is disappointing.

08:48 PM · Jun 03, 2025

1.8K170

Kohli never really looked his usual free-flowing self during his 35-ball knock. His innings comprised of only three fours. Kohli was RCB's fourth wicket to fall after Phil Salt (16 off nine), Mayank Agarwal (24 off 18), and Rajat Patidar (26 off 16).

This is not the first time the short-ball ploy has been used against Kohli. One prominent reference is how the Australians bowled to him during the second semi-final of the 2015 Cricket World Cup. Kohli departed for a 13-ball one after being constantly peppered by short balls during that game in Sydney, nearly a decade ago.

Speaking about the game, RCB ended their innings on 190/9. Interestingly, Kohli's 43 (35) was the highest score for the Patidar-led side. Jitesh Sharma (24 off 10) and Romario Shepherd (17 off nine) played handy cameos towards the business end of the innings.

As for PBKS, Arshdeep Singh (3/40 in four overs) and Kyle Jamieson (3/48 in four overs) shared six wickets between themselves. Vijaykumar Vyshak (1/30 in four overs) was the most impressive bowler for PBKS, whereas Azmatullah Omarzai too impressed massively with his spell in the middle overs that also saw PBKS getting Kohli's breakthrough.